Valentine's Day, 2014 - A Love Story
by 4MeJasper
Summary: A little Valentine's Day truffle. He's a corporate raider, handsome and arrogant. She's the shy office mouse with chocolate brown hair and eyes he can't resist. What happens when a Valentine's Day snow storm shuts down the city for the night?
1. Chapter 1 - Clumsy

Valentine's Day, 2014 - A Love Story

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and all the character. I just like to set them up on dates for Valentine's Day. My thanks to my wonderful beta, EdwardsMate4Ever.

(All human)

Chapter 1 - Clumsy

A hand caught her before she fell. Bella teetered for a moment, closing her eyes, then reopening them to establish her balance. That box of paper by the copier had always been out to get her. After she was steady, she looked up to thank her savior.

And lost her voice. She was staring into the blue eyes of Jasper Whitlock. The guy in charge of, well, everything. Her future. Her branch office's future. He seemed to be waiting for her to say something, but she just blinked, her eyes moving between those hypnotic eyes and full lips.

After a pause, he asked, "Are you OK?"

She took a gulp of air before stuttering out her reply. "Yes. Thanks. Sorry." She stopped. Could she appear any more of an idiot?

He smiled. "Just glad I was here."

_He's waiting for me to say something. Ummm…if I had known you would catch me, I would have fallen the day you strolled through the front door?_

She couldn't think of a response, other than to realize she was blushing, so she stared at the carefully buffed toes of her good shoes, and he walked away. She sighed and resisted the urge to peer around the corner to watch him as he strode off. After all, she was expecting to get called into his office today. She fingered the collar of her blouse nervously. Most of the other girls were wearing red or pink with their suits because it was Valentine's Day. She had worn white because that was the color of her interview blouse. The one she wore when she wanted to look corporate.

She gave in to her urge to look after him as he walked down the hall and poked her head around the corner. Too late, he was already gone.

They had heard about the incoming Regional Vice President, Jasper Whitlock, a few days before he arrived. Everyone was worried about his reputation for downsizing ruthlessly. Most of the women and some of the men were willing to forgive that and anything else, though, when they saw his photo on the Internet.

"He's supposed to be like the corporate slayer," Tom had said grimly when they got the news. "I've been checking up on him on the Internet. "

"You mean like Buffy, only he kills corporations?" Liza, the intern, asked.

"Not corporations. Just the employees, like us," Tom replied. "He gets rid of the people and closes offices to save the assets."

"I would die in his arms any day," Julie commented when Tom brought up Jasper's photo.

Bella tried to peer around all the heads that circled Tom's computer but couldn't see anything. She decided to move to the side where she could stand on her tiptoes to look over the cubicle wall. Tom glanced over at her and turned the monitor in her direction.

"How about you, Swan? See anything you like?" Tom asked.

A disturbingly handsome face, with a strong jaw, full lips, blue eyes, and crowned with blond hair, appeared on the computer monitor.

"He's cute," she muttered.

"Right," Tom said. "You can tell him that when him he hands you your pink slip."

Bella was the first back to her desk, rooting around in the stacks of paper to find the file she needed. The Cleghorn account. The name sounded like Foghorn Leghorn from the old cartoon, she thought. And the client's deep and booming voice resembled the cartoon character's a bit too. She could almost imagine him saying, "Well, I say…" But she hated it when her co-workers made that suggestion. She thought he was a good man whose billing was all fouled up. _And if it was my money, I would be mad, too._

After checking her messages, she sighed. Two messages from Cleghorn.

She dialed the number from memory. "Mr. Cleghorn?"

"'Bout time you called back," his voice boomed into the phone. She really didn't need a receiver. Oh yes, she did. He had to hear her. If he would listen.

"…your incompetent Accounting Department" he was saying, and then launched into his familiar tirade.

She got the number and date of his check and waited for him to take a breath before assuring him she would look into it. She hoped that this wouldn't be one of the days that he wanted her to call Home Office Accounting and have them both wait on the phone until she got a supervisor on the line. She had already been written up once for spending too much time on the phone with Mr. Cleghorn.

"The firm has other clients," her supervisor, Miss Miniver, had told her.

"It just seems that he has more problems than the others and…" But Bella never got to finish.

"You'll need to allocate your time more judiciously," Miss Miniver said chidingly, looking down at Bella over her black glasses frames. "I've pulled your phone records, and I am telling you that you spend too much time on his account. I'm putting a note in your file and diarying this conversation for one month. I expect to see improvement. I'll have the phone records available for review at our next conversation."

Bella knew she was spending more time with him each day.

_I'll probably be the first person Jasper Whitlock fires._

The day Jasper Whitlock arrived, the office was nearly silent. Everyone had worn their corporate best, which a few of the girls had paired with blouses that left little to the imagination.

Jasper strode across the floor without saying a word, entered his large office and closed the door.

When his door closed, the cubicle dwellers started standing up, looking around at one another over the shoulder-high divider walls like prairie dogs. After a few minutes, the silence gave way to the noise of a busy office as phones rang and were answered, copies were made, and heels clattered across wooden floors. But the feeling of comfort and camaraderie was gone, and only fear remained. People weren't comfortable catching up with one another's lives during a free moment as everyone did their utmost to look busy, so as to appear valuable to the company.

Over the past week, Jasper Whitlock had begun to call in the employees for meetings, one at a time. He summoned them alphabetically, instead of by title, so Jim Bridges from the Mailroom was in before Floyd Michaels, the producer with the best numbers. Michaels let everyone know how unhappy he was about it.

"Everybody knows this place is on its last leg," Michaels proclaimed one day after they had watched Jasper leave for a meeting. "I got talks going with other places, companies that would be much more appreciative. I'm going to remember my friends, never fear."

There was a buzz of nervous excitement when he said that. Michaels was a self-serving, preening peacock who had a small, gilded mirror hanging in his office so he could check his reflection any time he wanted. But he always made his numbers, and he had numerous plaques and awards in his office, including "Top Performer" and "Certificate of Excellence" for something or another.

Today, Jasper had reached the letter "P," calling in Marcia Phillips at 8:45. Bella grew more and more nervous, waiting for her turn. She picked out a file, call reports and other information to take with her into the office_. Might as well look organized._ She got the call from Jasper's assistant at 11:15, advising that, "Miss Swan, Mr. Whitlock would like to speak to you." Bella got up, ran her fingers through her hair and made her way to the dreaded office. People glanced up at her as she walked past, a few muttering "Good Luck."

She had worn her good wool skirt, the white blouse and low heels. Since her name, Swan, came near the end of the alphabet, she would be one of the last of the employee interviews.

"Psst. Stop. Neck line's too high," Julie whispered as she passed. "Unbutton it-at least one more, anyway. That's Jasper Whitlock in there, not Mr. Magoo."

"I'm sure he's used to girls trying that on him," she whispered back. _With looks like that, he could have anybody._

She got to the door and opened it. The high back of Jasper's leather chair had been facing the door, so she said, "Mr. Whitlock," to announce her presence.

He swiveled around, smiling at her. The shock of having his full attention made her freeze in place, her heart hammering in her chest as her emotions and hormones wreaked havoc throughout her being. So good looking. So dangerous.

_A shark welcoming his prey._

PLEASE REVIEW. I WILL SEND A PREVIEW OF THE NEXT CHAPTER TO ALL REVIEWERS.

I think this will be a three-shot. I will finish posting on Valentine's Day, however many chapters I end up writing.


	2. Chapter 2 - Stumbling

Valentine's Day, 2014

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and all the character. I just like to set them up on dates for Valentine's Day.

Chapter 2 – Stumbling

_He swiveled around, smiling at her. The shock of having his full attention made her freeze in place, her heart hammering in her chest as her emotions and hormones wreaked havoc throughout her being. So good looking. So dangerous._

_A shark welcoming his prey._

"Miss Swan, please take a seat." Was it her imagination or did his voice seem to caress her name? Imagination, for sure. She looked across the desk, which was barren except for the file directly in front of him. She felt uncomfortable, not knowing where to look and unable to stand his frank gaze. A movement caught her eye. He was picking something up. She decided to look at the file he had in his hand.

"I'm meeting with all of the employees to get a description of what they do for the company, and their feelings about the organization," Jasper said. "You're in accounting, correct?"

"Yes." _A monosyllable answer. He must think I need to go to school to learn big words_.

"You process payments," he continued, "follow up on overdue accounts, and resolve billing discrepancies."

_God, I sound boring_. "Correct," Bella said aloud, clutching the file she had brought with her in her lap. _Does this look corporate?_

"You've been here four years?" he asked, opening the folder.

_Great. That's my file. Full of Miniver's notes about my too-long phone calls with Mr. Cleghorn. _"Yes, just out of high school," she stated.

He looked up over his papers at her, catching her eye and holding it.

"You were recruited?"

_I could spend the rest of my life staring into those eyes_. "My sister's friend, Julie, had a job here. She graduated two years ahead of me and put in a good word for me, and here I am."

"Usually this job requires an accounting background," he commented.

_I'm not even qualified to be boring. Need to sound interesting. _ "I've been going to college at night."

He looked back at her file. "I don't see any record of the corporation paying for any courses."

"No. I don't have the type of position where they paid for classwork. I'm paying my own way through college." _And living in a small apartment with a roommate and a gray cat, doing anything to cut expenses._

He frowned and tapped his pencil on the desk. Her eyes followed his movements. _Even his hands are beautiful. Oh look, no wedding ring._

"So I've been meeting with all the employees to get a better understanding of your positions. A job description says one thing on paper, but my experience has been that people shape a job according to the skills and experience they bring to it," he began, then paused as he read something in her file.

She grimaced. He was probably reading Miniver's note about how much time Bella spent on the phone with Cleghorn. "He's not our biggest or most important client, though he thinks he is. You need to keep these phone calls under control," her supervisor had said before putting the warning in her file. She managed to keep up with all her other work. Why were they always after her about him? Inside, she knew. That distinctive voice boomed across the room at least once a day, making people laugh. Foghorn Leghorn.

_This is when I pull out my work and show him what a responsible employee I am. Even if I'm not qualified to sharpen your Mont Blanc pen – I mean your pencil. No, that's probably mechanical. _ Bella began to describe how she documented her work and who she worked with. She passed Jasper the file she had brought with her, as well as her time log and call reports.

He reviewed the file, taking a few minutes to look at it and handing it back with a smile.

She nearly swooned under the smile.

"Very organized." He leaned back in his chair. "Now for the question I've asked every employee I have chatted with so far. Tell me about your typical day."

So she started with her routine, including posting checks, reviewing repots and making collection calls. After a few minutes she stopped and waited for him to say something.

"There's a note here about a particular client. A Mr. Leghorn?" _Of course he would bring this up because of Miniver's note. I hate her._

"Cleghorn."

Jasper Whitlock raised an eyebrow.

"His name is Mr. Cleghorn. People call him Leghorn that because of his booming voice."

He waited, his face impassive_. _

_I challenged him. He could fire me._ Drawing a deep breath, she said, "It's not respectful to call him the name of a cartoon rooster. He's a client."

She waited.

Jasper picked up the file.

"You spend a lot of time with him on the phone, this note from your supervisor says."

"He's had problems with our accounting office."

"Forty minute average a day on these calls?" he asked. "There is a list of all your phone calls from the phone company."

"He asks to be put through to our Home Office," Bella replied. "They've apparently been told not to talk to him, and we get bounced around from person to person or spend a lot of time on hold. I don't think that's right. I stay on the phone until we reach someone."

He looked interested and asked for the names and titles of her Home Office accounting contacts. He noted them down, nodding.

When he was done, he looked back at her. "Do you give this attention to all of your clients? Up to..." he glanced down at the file "…one hour and fifty-eight minutes?"

The tension got to Bella. "He seems to need help. His payments keep getting lost." She could feel herself getting wound up but couldn't' stop. "This man is a client, and clients pay our bills. I don't see why I shouldn't…"

He leaned forward across the desk. "What could you possibly be talking about with this man for almost two hours?"

"He is very professional. " Which Cleghorn wasn't, as he swore rather creatively and imitated the voices of everyone they had spoken with in Home Office while they were waiting on hold. "We talk about how frustrating it is to work with this company. He should be treated with respect, and nobody else will do it. They keep saying out there that we're in trouble financially, and from what I've seen of how this man is treated, we should be. Driving away clients, and I will talk to him as long as it takes."

She froze, realizing she had raised her voice and moved to the edge of her chair.

Jasper was staring at her with a smile playing on the edge of his lips. "And there you are," he whispered.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…" She fought back tears. That wouldn't look professional.

He tilted his head, as if to catch her attention, a smile playing across his face. He set down her file and stunned her by asking, "And are you happy here?"

"Yes." Her broken voice couldn't have sounded very strong and she couldn't fight the tears that were building up. She had blown it. Yelling at this man who held her future in his hands, at least as far as this job was concerned?

"Excuse me, please," she said shakily, getting up to try to get out of the office quickly before her tears spilled over in front of him.

"Miss Swan?" he called after her. She could hear his chair's wheels rolling back.

She reached the door and opened it. Finally, she was clear of that office and back on the open floor where she was with friends. She felt like everyone was staring.

Before she could get to the lady's room, the tears started falling. She heard someone coming up behind her who caught the door as she went in.

Julie. _Thank God_.

"What happened?" Julie demanded. "Did he fire you?"

"Nothing happened," Bella sobbed. "He just asked me about my day."

"We'll sue him," Julie said. "He has no right to be upsetting people like this."

The tears were flowing full blast now. Julie pulled her into a hug.

"At least you're not wearing mascara," Julie said. "That would be a mess. But he has no right to make you cry. Nobody does. We'll sue him for everything he's got."

"I've made such a fool of myself. I'm never going back out there," Bella sobbed.

"You don't have to," Julie replied. "We'll just stay right here and order pizza if we get hungry. The way that snow is coming down, we're probably going to be stuck in here anyway."

They stayed for a few minutes until Bella calmed down. Someone knocked on the door and Julie opened it. "Bathroom's closed. Go use the one in the hall."

It was Liza, the intern. "Mr. Whitlock left a few minutes ago. He was carrying his coat and briefcase."

"Good. Maybe he'll get on a plane and fly off to make someone else's life miserable." Julie shot a look to Bella. "The coast is clear."

"Tom said he paused and looked at the door to the bathroom for a second as he passed by it," Liza added.

Bella was mortified. "He knew I was in here?"

Julie snorted. "Who knows what he knew. Who cares? It's Valentine's Day. We should go get laid."

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	3. Chapter 3 - Slipping

Valentine's Day, 2014

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and all the character. I just like to set them up on dates for Valentine's Day.

Chapter 3 – Slipping

_"Good. Maybe he'll get on a plane and fly off to make someone else's life miserable." Julie shot a look to Bella. "The coast is clear."_

_"Tom said he paused and looked at the door to the bathroom for a second as he passed by it," Liza added._

_Bella was mortified. "He knew I was in here?"_

_Julie snorted. "Who knows what he knew. Who cares? It's Valentine's Day. We should go get laid."_

Julie and Bella finally left the bathroom, and Bella stopped by one of the windows on her way back to her desk. The snow she had seen falling earlier was now coming down in thick, wet sheets. The streets were turning white, not something usually seen in Seattle. _Getting home is going to be tough. Why don't they close the office?_

Just as she reached her desk, the phone rang. There was a snicker from her neighbors as she picked up the receiver.

As she put the phone to her ear, she tried to focus, but her mind was wandering back to the conversation with Jasper Whitlock. Would this be her last call with Cleghorn?

Would that be a relief?

"Accounting, Bella Swan speaking," she said and waited for Cleghorn to begin his daily tirade. But this time her call took an unexpected turn.

"…your Accounting office. By the way, I seem to be snowed in to your fair city. I came up here to meet with my nephew, and it seems that due to the snow, I won't be leaving tonight. I wonder if you do me the honor of joining me for dinner?"

"Tonight?" Bella asked, stunned_. Why would he ask me to dinner? Obviously, he's stuck in a strange city and he's bored. How many hours have we spent on the phone?_

"Yes. I'm staying at the Marriot. You have plans for dinner?"

_Oh, why not just go_. _No other plans, after all._ "Um, no."

"Well, let me get reservations somewhere nearby, and I'll call you back in a few minutes."

It wasn't long before he called back. "It's Valentine's Day. Everywhere but my hotel is booked. They can't turn me away from a table at the hotel.

Wait, don't you have plans for tonight?"

"No," she said in a small voice. _Nobody's interested in me._

"How about 7:00?" he said. "My car will pick you up at 6:30 in front of your building."

"That would be nice, Mr. Cleghorn," Bella replied. She took a deep breath. "I don't know how much longer I'm going to be here for you to call anyway." _Stupid._

"What's that supposed to mean? You're leaving? Where are you going?"

_Home_. "Not by choice. But there are going to be lay-offs…"

"Not you," Cleghorn said with a great deal of assurance. "You know what you're doing."

Somehow, his kind words brought back the rollercoaster of her morning's emotions, and Bella started sobbing.

"Are you crying?" he asked.

"No. That would be unprofessional. Let me call you back. Good-bye." She hung up the phone and fought for control. Finally she regained it and stared at the phone. It had begun ringing as soon as she hung up, but she didn't pick it up.

_I just hung up on him. I'm going to get fired, and now I've hung up on him._

She exhaled, blowing the air upward toward her bangs. Finally, she turned away from the phone and watched the snow fall. The building across the street was only occasionally visible, a gray shadow emerging and then disappearing into the whirls of white.

She was drawn away from the scene outside her window when Julie showed up at her desk, wearing her coat and carrying her bag.

"White-out conditions," Julie stated. "We're leaving. Whitlock should have closed the office by now, but he hasn't, and we're not waiting for him any longer."

Bella stared at the ringing phone. "We're closing the office, so I'm not here, right?"

"Let it ring," Julie said. "That's Foghorn, right?"

Bella nodded. She waited for a break in the rings, then forwarded her phone to voicemail. "At least I don't have to listen to it."

People started to file noisily out of the office, chattering about how they were going to get home. Bella decided to wait at her desk. She turned off her computer and started reading, as she couldn't think of anywhere else to go nearby. Probably the coffee shops would be closing soon.

Around 3:00, the door to the office suite opened. It was Ms. Miniver, her supervisor. Miniver looked surprised to see the lights on, then she saw Bella and a slight frown passed across her face.

"I thought everyone left," Miniver said.

"I waited," Bella replied, "as I have a dinner appointment."

"You're the only one here?" Miniver asked sharply.

"Yes. The rest left at 1:00."

Miniver stared, seeming to consider Bella's statement carefully. Silence stretched between them.

A horrible thought occurred to Bella. "Why, do you think I might steal something?"

Miniver's eyes widened slightly but her expression didn't change.

"You're kidding, right?" Bella asked. "Is there something to steal?"

Miniver held her gaze for several seconds before saying, "There's always something to steal."

"Well, I haven't taken anything."

Miniver's look seemed to say, "We'll see."

Bella shivered. "What do you have against me?"

Miniver replied, "I have nothing against you."

Bella gathered her papers and turned off her computer. "I guess I'll wait in the lobby then." Then she took a deep breath. _If I'm going to be fired anyway…here goes_. She looked over at Miniver, who was turning on her computer."If there's always something to steal," Bella said, enunciating each word, "is it wise for me to leave you here with everyone else gone?"

Miniver's head snapped up, and she opened her mouth then closed it. Still holding Bella's gaze, she pulled out a pad of paper.

Bella smiled and left. But she was feeling shaky inside and leaned against the wall of the elevator on the ride to the lobby_. What's gotten into me? Am I just trying to get fired?_

When she reached the ground floor, she looked around the lobby. As she suspected, the little coffee shop had closed early, so she took a seat in one of the lobby chairs and pulled out one of her textbooks. She was soon taking notes and working the problems for the chapter until she was interrupted by her phone's low buzz. As she opened it, she saw the time. 6:25. How had it gotten so late?

She checked the caller ID. Julie.

Bella decided to look outside before returning the call. She pushed open the revolving door and held on as the wind hit her, and she was pelted by blowing ice and snow. She had on her parka, which had a fur-lined hood but was only waist-length, and warm boots, but they were only mid-calf. Her body from the waist to the top of the boots was only covered by her skirt, which was no match for the wind. She didn't see anyone on the street, so she went back inside and dialed Julie.

"Are you watching the news?" Julie's voice was excited.

"No."

"Well, turn it on!" Julie exclaimed. "We're all over the news! And it's not good…"

"I can't," Bella replied. "I'm still downtown."

"Why?" Julie asked.

"I have a dinner," Bella replied.

"Shut up!" Julie exclaimed. Bella rolled her eyes. "With who? Why didn't you tell me?"

Bella paused, then decided to tell her. "Cleghorn's in town."

There was a sharp intake of breath on the other line. "You can't! The news said we're being investigated for fraud and corruption! What if he's part of it? And if he is, and you get seen with him…"

Bella peeked out the revolving door. There was snow everywhere, but a black limo had just pulled up to the curb outside. Really, could it be him?

"I gotta go," Bella said. "Talk to you later."

"No, wait!" Julie's voice was hysterical as Bella hung up.

She pushed through the revolving door. For some reason, the lyrics of an old song started going through her head. "I'm the friendly stranger in the black sedan / and I'll take you where you want to go…"

PLEASE REVIEW. I WILL SEND A PREVIEW OF THE NEXT CHAPTER TO ALL REVIEWERS.

I appreciate the attention my little story has received over the past week. Cant' wait to put up the next two chapters! Last one will be on Valentine's Day, but I've got another one to post between now and then.


	4. Chapter 4 - Falling

Valentine's Day, 2014

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and all the character. I just like to set them up on dates for Valentine's Day.

Chapter 4 – Falling

_She peeked out the revolving door. There was snow everywhere, but a black limo had just pulled up to the curb outside. Really, could it be him?_

_"I gotta go," Bella said. "Talk to you later."_

_"No, wait!" Julie's voice was hysterical as Bella hung up._

_She pushed through the revolving door. For some reason, the lyrics of an old song started going through her head. "I'm the friendly stranger in the black sedan / and I'll take you where you want to go…"_

A tall man got out of the back seat on the passenger side. "Miss Swan?" he asked. She nodded. "Arnold Cleghorn. Nice to finally meet you in person."

He held the door open, waving aside the chauffeur who was walking around the car. "Focus on keeping the car on the road, friend," he said. "I'll get the lady seated."

The chauffeur tipped his hat and returned to the driver's side, saying, "As you wish."

Bella climbed in to the back seat, not sure where to sit. It was a stretch limousine, so she went all the way to the back and settled into the seat, pulling off her parka and watching the snow melt from her boots into the car's carpet.

Cleghorn took a seat opposite her and gave her a big smile, rubbing his hands. He was a tall man, tan and handsome in a rugged way, and looked to be in his mid-50's. He had an expensive wool coat over a charcoal gray suit, which he had paired with black cowboy boots. She had to smile at the beautifully tooled leather boots.

"Comfortable?" he asked.

_Maybe Julie was right. Maybe this was a really bad idea_. "I'm sorry about earlier…" she began.

"Not to worry. I'm just pushy, one of my virtues or character flaws, depending on who's talking. Good thing we're only going two blocks."

_Maybe Julie was wrong. It's just dinner._

When they got to the hotel, they went directly to the restaurant, which was already crowded. The maître d handed Bella a rose as she walked in, and the hostess seated them in a u-shaped booth along one of the walls. As soon as they were settled, Cleghorn asked the waiter for a bottle of their finest champagne, "In honor of the lovely lady and the holiday."

_This meal will cost half my paycheck, if he keeps ordering drinks like that._

She was relieved to see that the table was set for three. "My nephew will be joining us as soon as he finishes with some stockholders meeting. Fire sale of a company, you know."

Bella nodded. "A lot of that going on, I hear," she said.

"So tell me what happened at work."

"I wish you would just forget about that," she said softly, leaning across the table toward him. "It was very unprofessional on my part."

"Dang it, child. You've spent hours on the phone while I grumped. I can listen to you. We're off-site, so tell Uncle Foghorn."

She looked up, startled to hear him mention the cartoon character.

He met her gaze and let out a booming laugh, drawing the attention of the entire restaurant. "I know that's who I sound like."

"I never let anyone call you that," she said.

He chuckled. "That character was based on my uncle, a Texas rancher, you know. 'Never tick off an artist or a writer,' he told me. 'You risk seeing yourself on the screen at the picture show, and not always in the most favorable light.'"

Bella's jaw dropped. "Really?"

"Really. True story."

The waiter brought their champagne, and they waited while he poured two glasses.

"So. Those tears earlier today," Cleghorn continued after sampling the champagne. "Man involved?"

"No," Bella replied.

He cocked an eyebrow.

"Well, maybe," Bella said. "But not in the usual way."

"What other way is there?"

"He's out of my league," she replied.

"Oh, I doubt that. Pretty girl like you. Smart." He harrumphed.

She blushed. "You said your nephew is joining us?"

He waved a hand, almost knocking over the waiter who had brought their champagne. "He'll be here soon. Boy's got a healthy appetite." He looked at the waiter. "I hope you won't be serving any of the nouvelle cuisine stuff, the kind that only comes in tiny portions?"

"No, sir," the waiter replied. "We pride ourselves on making sure our guests are happy."

"Better bring enough, and not count on me ordering room service at 10:00 P.M. because I'm still hungry."

"I'll see to it," the waiter replied.

"You got steak on here, right?" Cleghorn demanded, tapping the menu he had been handed without opening it.

"Yes, sir."

"And not just some fool salad. Good beef?"

"Yes sir," the patient waiter replied.

"Good. We'll wait for my nephew to arrive, but bring something while we're waiting."

After the waiter left, Cleghorn leaned across the table. "Your company, well, everyone knows it's on the auction block. You're aware of that?"

"I've heard, but I don't know what it means for me," Bella said. _Looks like a long night ahead. Maybe he can fill me in on whatever was on the news._

"Means that office you work for will be closing, to make a long story short. But I'll be blunt. I like you. You took a difficult situation and did everything to make it work. Smart. Determined. And you're pretty, too," Cleghorn said. "So I want to offer you a job. Working for me, here in Seattle. I have some interests locally, and I can't just keep flying up here. Sound good?"

Bella was stunned. She had not actually been sure he liked her. After all, she had never been able to resolve his billing situation.

"Don't know what to say?" Cleghorn asked. "Don't worry. Think on it. Where's my fool nephew? Oh there he is, speak of the devil."

Bella glanced over his shoulder in the direction Mr. Cleghorn was looking, and saw Jasper Whitlock making his way across the dining room toward their table carrying a bouquet of red roses.

She looked back at him, stunned, just in time to see a twinkle in his eye. "Is that Mr. 'Out-of-my-league'?" he asked.

She nodded slowly. _What was going on? Was this some kind of a set-up?_

"Relax," Cleghorn said. "I heard about all of your company's troubles and knew something was about to go down. So I recommended my nephew to the new board. He's known for being a shark when he has to be, like any good man, and I sent him in after you."

PLEASE REVIEW. I LOVE HEARING FROM EVERYBODY, AND I WILL SEND A PREVIEW OF THE NEXT AND FINAL CHAPTER TO ALL REVIEWERS. SEE YOU ON VALENTINE'S DAY!

Anybody want Jasper to rescue them from their job (or boring life)?


	5. Chapter 5 - Trust

Valentine's Day, 2014

Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and all the character. I just like to set them up on dates for Valentine's Day.

Chapter 5 – Trust

_She nodded slowly. What was going on? Was this some kind of a set-up?_

_"Relax," Cleghorn said. "I heard about all of your company's troubles and knew something was about to go down. So I recommended my nephew to the new board. He's known for being a shark when he has to be, like any good man, and sent him in after you."_

As Jasper reached their table, Mr. Cleghorn said, "Miss Swan, this is my nephew, Jasper Whitlock. I believe you two have met?"

"Yes, several times." He looked different tonight than he had in the office, more relaxed and confident.

Cleghorn looked at him sternly. "Boy, do I need to thrash you for your conduct with Miss Swan earlier today?"

Jasper grimaced. "You couldn't make me feel any worse than I felt when she bolted out of my office."

"You didn't try to stop her?" Cleghorn asked.

"She was fast. Half-way across the floor before I could get out from behind the desk."

Cleghorn snorted. "Then you should have just leapt over it."

Jasper looked at Bella. "I didn't get the chance to say I was sorry for earlier."

Bella blushed. This was very unexpected. "It's OK," she mumbled. _Did I really misread that situation? What had he said to me again?_

Her attempts to recall the conversation were disrupted when Jasper slid into the booth opposite Cleghorn, sandwiching her between the two men. He put the roses in front of her. "These are for you."

She pulled them toward her and smiled. But inside, her head was spinning. This was happening too fast. Were they serious? "Thank you," she said aloud.

Jasper bent his head and leaned toward Bella, adding in a low voice, "Whenever I'm around my uncle, for some reason, I always feel I should be wearing spurs."

Now she laughed. Jasper Whitlock was becoming more human.

Cleghorn smiled knowingly at both of them. Out loud, he asked, "Is it done?"

"It is," Jasper replied. "Done. Out of my hands."

The waiter approached. "Whiskey, straight," said Jasper.

The two men looked at one another and then Cleghorn nodded.

"They just put out the announcement, so I can talk," Jasper told Bella. "They're closing your office, and arresting Floyd Michaels. He had been engaged in some unethical dealings, bid-rigging. And your Home Office had some accounting irregularities as well. Looks like those crimes are separate. Neither one knew about the other. The Home Office was just someone who took advantage of a hole they found in your security."

Cleghorn snorted, and Jasper smiled

"One of my uncle's payments fell victim to that accounting scheme," Jasper continued, "and that's how I got involved. My uncle grew suspicious. We think the woman repaid it from another customer's account when she realized the money had been missed, and she has just been juggling funds ever since while siphoning from the corporation."

"And I'm going to take those funds out of that woman's hide," Cleghorn thundered, slapping his hand on the table.

Jasper leaned back into the booth and his smile grew larger as he watched his uncle.

"How is that possible?" Bella asked.

"It happens," Jasper replied. "There is supposed to be a separation of duties in key accounting functions, but someone got promoted and managed to keep her former job's passwords and system access. She was able to set up shell accounts so she could siphon off funds to a personal account."

"How did anyone figure out how she was doing it?" Bella asked.

"Miniver was the whistle-blower inside the company," Jasper said. "It helped to get cooperation before I arrived. I'm starved. Where's that waiter?"

Bella grimaced at the thought of Miniver, and Jasper laughed. "She's not a pleasant person, and once she found a problem, she started her own investigation of everybody. Look at it this way. She cleared you in her own investigation."

"She wasn't happy with me today," Bella said. "I kind of said something to her as I was leaving."

Cleghorn cocked an eyebrow and leaned forward. "What did you say? Tell Uncle Foghorn."

"I told her, 'If there's always something to steal, is it wise for me to leave you here with everyone else gone?'"

Cleghorn roared with laughter, slapping the table so hard the silverware clattered and one of the champagne glasses tipped over. Jasper grinned as a waiter arrived to mop up the spill on the tablecloth.

"Hellcat," Cleghorn said. "What'd I tell you, boy? Get her riled, and she brings out the claws. She's a keeper."

Jasper whispered, "I know," stretching his hands above his head. As he put his arms back down, he slid one along the back of the booth and put it behind Bella.

After the waiter finished cleaning up the spilled champagne, Cleghorn ordered for all three of them. The only question he asked Bella was how she liked her steak. When she said she was vegetarian, he raised an eyebrow and told the waiter to bring her a salad. When the waiter asked what kind of salad, Cleghorn snapped, "A real salad. Don't bother me with details. The kind with the little fish on it, but take those off because she's vegetarian."

Bella saw Jasper suppress a laugh and didn't say anything. A Caesar salad would be fine.

When the food arrived, they began to eat. They spoke of lighter topics, mostly laughing as Cleghorn made comments about their fellow diners. His eye was sharp as his wit, and he was soon telling stories about the romances that would blossom or flop after their neighbor's dinner.

"He'll be getting a slap at the door," Cleghorn said pointing to a sharply dressed man two tables over. "And that one, he's got a ring. He had it baked into the desert. He better hope she's not dieting," he commented, gesturing to their neighbors to their right. "Waiter told me that during lunch," he said in a low voice. "They were here then, too. He's still in the same outfit, but she has on a dinner dress."

Bella was surprised at how hungry she was. Jasper removed his arm from behind her when he began eating, then put it back when he was done. This time, he put his hand on her shoulder and pulled her toward him.

"What about this guy here?" he asked, tapping his chest. "Our fellow diners are probably doing the same thing we are. What do you think his chances are with this lovely lady?" He touched a lock of her hair, smoothing it behind her ear before continuing his meal.

_What are his chances? What am I thinking? I'm getting carried away in the moment. But so, it appears, is he._

When Cleghorn put his fork down, Jasper continued the discussion of Miniver. "Doesn't matter what she's happy or unhappy about. She's being placed on leave before being transferred to another office. For her own sake and safety, I told her. She'll be happier, making new people miserable."

"But don't you worry," Cleghorn said. "You're being taken care of. We've rented another suite in the same building, a smaller office. As I said, I would like you to come work for us."

Bella was still puzzled over this offer. "Why?"

"Because, in part, of my big-mouthed uncle's insistence on getting involved," Jasper said. "Because I was entranced by the petite brunette who nearly fell into my arms in that copy room…" he continued, taking Bella's hand with his free hand, and capturing her eyes with his gaze as he kissed the back of her hand.

She returned the look and covered his hand with hers, never wanting to let go.

"Let's go someplace we can talk without my uncle giving me romantic advice," Jasper said.

Just then the waiter showed up. "Coffee or dessert?" he began.

"I think those two can skip the dessert," Cleghorn said. "You two run along now. "

As Jasper slid out of the booth and extended a hand to Bella, Cleghorn said, "Don't let me hear that she's unhappy, or I'll take it out of your hide."

"Oh, no worries there, Uncle," purred Jasper as he slipped his arm around Bella's waist. He picked up the roses with his other hand. "I'm going to make her happiness my top priority, from now on."

As Jasper escorted Bella from the room, Cleghorn waved the waiter back over. "They're going to need some champagne," he told the waiter with a grin. "Room 1863. Right away."

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO HAS READ, FOLLOWED, OR FAVORITED THE STORY. I hope you've had as much fun reading as I have writing it.

I have to admit I've gotten really attached to these characters, as those of you who left me a note probably noticed.

I might continue with this story at some point.


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